The tee shot is the most important shot in the game of golf. Driving the ball poorly and inconsistently is a problem that plagues all golfers. One of the factors that causes this problem is improper tee depth. Often golfers do not place the tee far enough into the ground, inadvertently teeing the ball too high, causing them to strike the bottom portion of the ball or "sky" it. Conversely, golfers often place the tee too far into the ground, inadvertently teeing the ball too low, causing them to hit the top portion of the ball, or "top" it. Each scenario results in a poorly hit tee shot.
Therefore, inventors have created several types of tees designed to help the golfer consistently gauge the proper tee height. However, all of these devices appear (a) too clumsy and impractical to use and/or (b) too complicated and expensive to manufacture.
U.S. Pat. No. 1,553,561 to Scott (1925) discloses a tee that has one definite stop so that the same exact height may be attained each time. This is not an effective solution. Due to differences in golf swings from person to person, not all golfers tee the ball up at the same height. The proper tee height for one golfer is most likely the improper tee height for another. What Scott suggests is to manufacture at least two different tees; the high tee and the medium tee. This still does not provide the multiple tee height flexibility that golfers need. If a particular golfer desired a tee height which was not manufactured, it would have to be custom-made to accommodate his/her specific need. In addition, it's obviously more costly to manufacture many different versions of an invention instead of just one. Likewise, it is impractical to provide custom tees when one standard gauged tee can achieve the desired result and more.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,530,088 to Smith (1950) is an adjustable tee that is not inserted into the ground but placed on top of it. First, even though the tee appears to be adjustable, there is no gauge or constant that enables the golfer to be confident he/she is setting the ball at his/her correct height. Secondly, this tee by Smith is impractical because it appears to be difficult and clumsy to reset quickly and precisely if the golfer so desires. In addition, this tee is difficult to store away without changing a golfer's preferred setting. The same applies to another adjustable above the ground tee by Banigan, U.S. Pat. No. 1,554,321 (1925).
Several types of adjustable collared tees have been proposed-for example, U.S. Pat. No. 3,114,557 to Cabot (1963), U.S. Pat. No. 3,203,700 to Antonious (1965), and U.S. Pat. No. 3,408,079 to Kirikos (1968). All employ the use of a second part, an adjustable collar or stop member that moves up and down the main body of a notched tee. The collar is positioned in any one of the notched spaces. All of these tees suffer from a number of disadvantages, such as:
(a) Clumsy to adjust quickly if a change is desired once the tee is initially placed in the ground. PA1 (b) Limited in adjustability. A golfer can only set the ring where notched. The golfer cannot set collars between the notched areas. PA1 (c) Costly to manufacture. The additional part(s) add additional manufacturing costs. PA1 (d) The collar, if not not locked specifically into one of the notches on the tee could easily be lost. PA1 (e) Compared to the standard tee of today the life span of these tees is much less. The notches appear to create a much more fragile tee. The inverted notches decrease the strength and integrity of the tee, creating one that is easier to break. PA1 (a) to provide a golf tee that enables golfers to ascertain whether or not they've chosen the correct height in which to tee the ball. PA1 (b) to provide a golf tee that enables golfers to have more confidence with their tee shots. PA1 (c) to provide a golf tee that enables golfers to consistently tee the ball at the same height if desired from hole to hole and golf course to golf course. PA1 (d) to provide a golf tee that enables golfers to effectively adjust to varying atmospheric and weather conditions (i.e., wind, precipitation, altitude, etc.). PA1 (e) to provide a golf tee that enables golfers to more effectively control the distance their tee shots roll. PA1 (f) to provide a golf tee that enables a golfer to adapt to varying course conditions (i.e., moisture content of the ground, design and layout, natural obstructions, etc). PA1 (g) to provide a golf tee that enables golfers to control the height of their tee shot. PA1 (h) to provide golfers with a gauged golf tee that is easy to use. PA1 (i) to provide golfers with a gauged golf tee that incorporates no additional parts. PA1 (j) to provide a gauged golf tee that is easy and inexpensive to manufacture. PA1 (k) to provide a golf tee that is brightly colored. PA1 (l) to provide a brightly colored tee that is functional. PA1 (m) to provide a gauged tee that can be used effectively by all golfers, regardless of the type of golf swing they employ.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,467,390 by Gardiner (1969) shows an adjustable golf tee that incorporates no fewer than five parts including a target member that could actually hamper a golfer's ability to make square contact with the golf ball.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,516,780 by Tabet (1985) shows a two-part adjustable tee does not have reference points that enable the golfer to gauge with consistency the height at which the ball should be teed. Therefore this tee is no more beneficial than that of the traditional non-gauged standard golf tee, and has the disadvantage of multiple parts.